UK to boost Afghanistan troop numbers

The number of British troops in southern Afghanistan will be increased by around 800 by the end of the summer, the defence secretary, Des Browne, said today.

The move will being the total UK troop deployment in the volatile Helmand province to 5,800.

British soldiers have faced fierce resistance from Taliban militia in Helmand, where the majority of the 46 British soldiers to die in Afghanistan have been killed.

Mr Browne told the Commons that there was "a long way to go in Afghanistan, particularly in the south".

Meanwhile, Britain's presence in the Afghan capital, Kabul, is to be reduced by around 500 as it hands command of the Nato-led international security assistance force over to the US this weekend.

The result will be a net increase of approximately 300 in the overall British commitment to the country, which currently stands at 6,000, the Ministry of Defence said.

The changes come as Three Commando Brigade of the Royal Marines reach the end of their tour of duty in Helmand in April.

In a written statement to MPs, Mr Browne confirmed the brigade will be replaced by units drawn principally from 12 Mechanised Brigade. Around 600 callout notices will be served on reservists in order to fill some 420 posts.

Today's announcement follows lengthy wrangling within Nato over which countries will supply troops to meet a shortfall identified by commanders in southern Afghanistan.

Last month, the former Nato secretary-general Lord Carrington accused France and Germany of "not pulling their weight" by providing troops for frontline duties in the south, where the Taliban maintains control over large areas.

Lord Carrington warned that Afghanistan could sound "the death knell" for the alliance. "As with any military operation, those forces assigned to operations in Afghanistan are subject to periodic rotation," Mr Browne said.

"Preparations for the next such rotation are under way now. These build on the progress we have made in Helmand in the six months since July 10 2006, when I informed the House of our current deployments in Afghanistan.

"By the late summer, personnel numbers in southern Afghanistan should settle at around 5,800."

Mr Browne said British troops had "released the Taliban stranglehold" in many parts of Helmand province. However, he warned that the Taliban had been "knocked back, but are not finished".

The task was not Britain's alone "but one that belongs to Nato and the international community as a whole", he said, adding that he would stress the point in talks with Nato allies next week.

Liam Fox, the shadow defence secretary, said the Tories supported the mission in Afghanistan but added that "serious questions" should be raised about why the "British army are shouldering yet more of the burden down in the south of Afghanistan".